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luvoldstuff · 05-03-2013, 08:20 AM

I have a '93 '31 excella with original plumbing and appliances, but I am working on a gutted '68 globe trotter for my parents to tag along with us a few times a year.
I hope to be doing a professional job not cutting corners but what I am considering is not installing a new propane system. One reason is my parents will only be joining us at camps with full hook-ups plus the TOTAL cost and extra labor involved. I have a lot of projects and I want to get this one fully "financed" and completed. We have yet to "boondock" in ours even though it is fully capable. I don't think I'm even going to have a fresh water tank(I will run a line though, for future owners)
I know going all electric 110(I do have a converter and battery) will limit use of all appliances at the same time- AC/water heater/fridge/range?
I thought of having an "either/ or" switch between 2 of each-like some rvs?
?The water heater would be a small on demand unit? (ebay $150)
?Lots of choices for 2- burner electric cook tops.??
?The fridge, I hate the looks of a home fridge "stuck" in the hole were a 2-way unit used to be but I found a nice small stainless one I can build in. (we only camp 1-2 hours away, they would have to travel with a cooler or use ours)
?AC-I thought of using one of those free standing portable units and vent it out the big round hole the furnace had, but I'm leaning towards a roof unit. I'm hoping it's pre-wired-there's a mystery wire in the back but I haven't cut a big enough hole to find it in the ceiling.

?PEX and compression fittings?
I'm doing a new subfloor and am rebuilding the back of the frame to accomodate 2 new abs tanks and totally re-plumbing it.
I've been reading a lot about Pex, and plan on using it. I've re-plumbed a few houses using some pex type fittings, but this is my first AS rebuild.
The clamp ring type do look the cleanest, but I see the "push" and compression fittings are much cheaper and plentiful-any reason not to use them??
Okay, enough for now, please fire away!

Future_Craig · 06-13-2013, 05:28 PM

Howdy!

I have a '74 Sovereign that I'm converting to all electric and it sounds like your game plan is very similar to mine.

Full disclosure - I can't offer any 'real world' experience about going all-electric because I haven't officially been camping yet

but hopefully you can get something from my plan and what I've discovered so far...

If at any point I sound like I know what I'm talking about, stop me.

Firstly, my personal take on going all-electric in Florida is that it should be fine in most cases. (I'm just south of you, in Orlando)
Florida gets soooo hot that you can only go without AC for about 4 seconds in January. Other than that you will need AC - and that means full hookups and no need to boon-dock or rely on propane.

Portable AC?
Don't waist your time. I got a nice portable AC unit to cool my trailer while I worked on my renovation and it was a joke. I literally only felt cool when I was sitting directly in front of it - seriously.

In Florida, I really think the best answer is to install a proper AC roof unit. I think the only issue you might have with a '68 is that you won't have any way to drain the condensation unless you install a drain tube. Otherwise it will just drip down the side. Not a deal beaker and I'm sure you won't care if it means you stay cool.

Note: There are some people in the forums that have had some success installing AC solutions into the spaces of 60's and 50's trailers - so you can look into that but I think the easiest is the plop one on the roof and call it a day. my 2¢.

Some things to consider:

1. Electric Water Heater - Ariston/Bosch Tankless (link) Lowes Link

It has the same capacity as the old propane heater and it installed in same spot. I just had to run a 110 outlet for power.

2. 30 amp vs 50 amp?
The easiest way to convert to 'all electric' is the keep everything 110v with 30 amp service. That said, I would definitely consider converting your AS to a 50amp service as you will be adding some major power loads to heat your water and cook your food.

At the risk of running this thread off the rails in the first post, let me say that there is plenty of info on how to do this elsewhere in the forums but it's worth mentioning here: Converting to 50amp in Florida is worth considering 'because' the AC alone will consume such a large part of your available 30 amps that you will need to start turning the AC off in order to run a microwave, heat water and cook.

This is the main disadvantage of going all electric. Converting to 50 amp, most if not all RV sites will have 50 amp service and for the ones that don't, you just need to bring a 50-30 amp converter plug and don't run the microwave with the AC on.

Personally, I converted my system to a 50 amp service and upgraded my Converter.
Hope this helps!

Craig

**DKB_SATX** · 06-13-2013, 11:20 PM

Future_Craig: Look carefully at the specs on the electric tankless water heater again. That rating is gallons per HOUR, not at all comparable to an RV tank water heater in actual use. If you want useful on-demand water heat, from a practical perspective you need gas.

On edit: Actually, you tricked me. You described it as tankless, which is not correct... it's actually a small local tank, which is not the same as a tankless water heater. So, you have a 7 gallon tank and until you exhaust that it should work similarly well to a gas water heater. Since it's rated at 7 gph, though, I'd guess its recovery time is about 1/4th as good as a propane tank heater.

luvoldstuff · 06-14-2013, 04:39 AM

Thanks, the electric demand was a concern, I was just thinking (typing)out loud. I've decided to go the traditional route, I bought an Atwood gas water heater, gas cooktop. I'm making a space for the under counter gas /electric fridge but putting in an elec. only stainless unit from Lowes for now-I'm way over budget.
Prices vary greatly between suppliers, I've found that AdventureRV.com has great prices on just about every camper part plus fast and reasonable shipping.
Yes, those portable AC units are a joke. I'm taking mine back, you need a rooftop unit (15k btu) at least here in Florida for sure. You have to fight Airstream ceilings that get smokin hot in full sun 99 degree heat.

Future_Craig · 06-14-2013, 08:31 AM

DKB_SATX:
Oops - Sorry about the 'tankless' reference.

And thanks for pointing out the recovery time difference.
It will be something to consider if going go all-electric.

luvoldstuff:
Good luck with your project - and thanks for the AdventureRV.net tip!

bwoodtx · 06-14-2013, 08:43 AM

You might also consider using a regular Atwood rv gas/electric water heater. These have a built in electric element that only uses about 4-6amps. I have one in my 24' Argosy and I can run A/C, Microwave, and water heater together. Of course, in the real world the possibility of these running at the same time is remote. I did it for testing purposes. My service is 30amps.

Jemmylou · 06-23-2013, 11:50 PM

Hello bwoodtx, I have a '65 Globetrotter that needs a new hot water heater. I have been told that Atwood is the way to go. Would you mind sharing the gas/elec model you used?
Thanks a lot.